You have to remember that Mavic stuff was the most expensive kit available and by a decent margin when it was available new. It was usually the 'Pro's pro' stuff...

Its a veritable bargain today compared with the crap that Campy tries to pawn off today at Monopoly money price points. The funny thing is that half the innards of Campy stuff comes from China, Taiwan, and Romania only to be assembled in Italy, and often times not even that takes place. You can't begin to compare the quality of components available today with what was available in the previous generation. The quality and finish of Japanese components when the Yen ruled was unparalleled. There was a day when Campy couldn't throw enough titanium at its groups to lighten the race level components. Now its merely sufficient to throw a plasticky carbon sticky fascade on a heavier component and the nameplate and brand appeal will carry it. Its kind of like the Harley Davidson brand, at some point it is no longer about what it is, but what people think it "is". Less than one in a thousand sets of Campy components really end up on bikes that are raced competitively. Performance ends up being secondary as a consideration of design. Rather, the push to be cutting edge, with 10, then 11 speeds, carbon Ergo levers that are less reliable, heavier, and more finick than 'drillium' downtube shifters and dedicated brake levers.

I think cyclists are starting to come to terms with the fact that the quality of what is available new, and the force fed technological advancements aren't really "best", and many cyclists are starting to become a bit more sophisticated. They no longer are merely longing for climbing a rung up the component hierarchy or even to jump from the Shimanoculture ship to Campy, but are looking for something...well...better.

There is a whole cult of cyclists that place a very high value on 7/8 speed kit. Its absolutely bombproof, its more durable, and the drivetrain of choice for those that have the imagination to build projects for the unsupported world tour they most likely will never take.

It just so happens that Ergo and STI 8 speed stuff was problematic and not at all durable, being the early inception of integrated shifting. Mavic stuff happens to be the high water mark of 7/8 speed, has no integrated issues (in terms of reliability or weight penalty), is completely disassembleable and can be repaired/relaced down to the last part, and is conveniently available in tourist configurations (medium and long cage derailleurs). When a group has the pedigree of being on a Tour winning bike, and has a Paris-Roubaix win under its belt, and is light enough for Pro peleton bikes while being strong enough to essentially rebrand half the group without any significant changes for mountain bike XC race use, well...what do you expect?

This stuff is epic.

Would you really rather have some disposable Rival, Force, Chorus 10/11, or what have you in the cycle of constantly latest/greatest nonsense that SRAM, Campy, and Shimano keep shoveling or would you rather have something epic, with personality, history, and panache?

The Mavic groupe is a bargain in real dollars, compared to what it used to cost, again in real dollars. Be thankful it hasn't kept pace with its original valuations and had a collectible premium added to reflect the true scarcity of the stuff...